50 centimes FRANCE (1962-1964)

in the coin centre personification of France - bust of Marianne in a Phrygian cap facing left; along the top edge: RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (French Republic)

in the coin centre in two lines large face value: 50 / CENTIMES; below year of issue; along the bottom edge wreath of the laurel branch on the left and cereal ear on the right; along the top right edge in two lines motto of France: LIBERTE • EGALITE / • FRATERNITE • (liberty, equality, fraternity)

plain

13 XI 1961

27 VII 1965

Henri Lagriffoul (signature LAGRIFFOUL at Marianne's neck in the obverse), Adrien Dieudonné (signature A.DIEUDONNE before LIBERTE along the reverse edge)

La Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint), Paris (mint mark on the left side of the face value in the reverse, on the right side of the face value privy mark of mint's director Raymond Joly - owl)

1962	37 560 000
1963	62 482 000
1964	41 446 000	+ 25 600 in annual boxed sets	four collar folds

1962, 1963 - 3 or 4 collar folds on the obverse

Privy marks of the general engravers of the Mint of Paris, which can be found on French coins produced after 1944:

Lucien Bazor	1931-1958		wing
Raymond Joly	1958-1974		owl
Emile Rousseau	1974-1994		dolphin
Pierre Rodier	1994-2000		bee
Gérard Buquoy	2001-2002		horseshoe
Serge Levet	2003		heart
Hubert Larivière	2004-2010		horn
Yves Sampo	from 2011		rosette

Marianne - the allegory of Liberty - the symbol of the culture and the national emblem of France. Her images adorn not only coins, but also stamps, state seals, institutions logos, courts of law. Marianne is presented mostly in the Phrygian cap (cap of liberty). Many monuments and paintings were devoted to her. She is often armed leading the French people to fight for liberty, equality and fraternity. Marianne's image changed over the years. Anonymous Marianne was represented by faces of movie stars such as Brigitte Bardot or Catherine Deneuve. Below the official logo of France and the French government.



The Paris Mint (La Monnaie de Paris) dating back to the 6th century is the oldest French institution, and some would say - oldest institution in the world. The mint office is located in the center of Paris in a complex called Hotel des Monnaies, which was opened on December 20, 1775. A cornucopia is the symbol placed on any coin minted by the Paris Mint from January 1, 1880. The second character visible on coins was a symbol of the general engraver (Graveur general). The tradition of this job dates back to 1547 when Henry II of Valois appointed a general engraver as the only person authorized to create the king's portrait. Only the design prepared by the general engraver could have been copied to the coins stamps in national mints. Starting from 2001, the heads of engravers workshop in the Paris Mint do not hold this traditional title anymore, but their privy marks still appear on French coins next to the mint mark.

The name of the French mint - La Monnaie de Paris - suggests that the plant producing coins is located in the French capital. This is however, only the company name and factories were placed in various French cities. At the moment, the only place producing coins of France (and of some other countries) is Pessac near Bordeaux.